Paralyzing Fear
by mlw217
Summary: Emily Prentiss is kidnapped by a deranged man that is making the team "play his game" in order to get Emily back alive. Please Read and Review!
1. Chapter 1

Paralyzing Fear

Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds

"_Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear." ~Ambrose Redmoon_

Emily Prentiss took a deep breath and let it out into the dark, cold night, as a frosted cloud billowed from her mouth. Fear overtook her mind and she didn't know how to deal with her situation. She was all alone. There was no one to help her. If she screamed, no one would hear her and she would just get caught. This wasn't her; she wasn't supposed to be afraid of anything. With her job, she thought she should be used to the evil in the world. Her heart hammered in her head as she snuck around the large red barn. Her mouth was dry and all she wanted was to feel safe again. If she could just get to her team, then she would be alright. Emily had been kidnapped. As she thought about it, she couldn't really believe that this was happening to her. This had never crossed her mind as a possibility even though she saw these things every day. Her eyes filled with tears and she shook it off, knowing that she had to keep herself together if she was going to escape and survive this. All of the cases she'd worked, she hadn't really thought about what she would have done in their situation. Now she was in the center of her work and she had no idea what to do. Fear jumped in her throat and she held back a scream. She wondered if her team had even noticed that she was missing. Her eyes burned from lack of sleep and she shook those thoughts from her head, trying to energize herself. She had to escape. Suddenly, a giant of a man stepped in front of her, grabbing a handful of her hair, dragging her back around the barn. He was going at such a stride that now, Emily's feet couldn't keep up. He drug her solely by her hair as her feet drug the ground. He had a gruff dace with a full, red beard and dirty overalls. He had receding hairline and he was at least six foot six. He was huge. With his free hand, he grabbed Emily's arm, nearly crushing her bone. Emily screamed out in pain, which only earned her a knee to the face and she was out cold.

***

Meanwhile, back at BAU headquarters, JJ's forehead creased in growing concern. She hadn't seen Emily all day and it wasn't like her to not show up and not call anyone about it; especially after a big case had been solved. JJ stood up and caught Hotch by the arm as he walked by her.

"Hey, have you seen Emily?" JJ's voice projected concern and hope. Hotch's brows drew together and he shook his head.

"No, why?" Hotch's eyes were curious.

"I'm worried. It isn't like her to not show up or call to say she's sick or something." JJ was truly troubled by this.

"Hm. You're right. I'll ask around, you call her." They had no case yet, so Hotch was fully focused on finding Emily. It wasn't an urgent cause at the moment, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Hotch walked to Garcia's office and knocked quietly on the door as he opened it.

"Garcia, have you seen Emily today?" He hid his concern well as he questioned.

"Um...no. Actually I was just wondering where she was. Is there something wrong?" Garcia had rolled her chair around to face Hotch as she wondered why Emily wouldn't be at work. She was always at work.

"No. Go back to whatever you were doing. Thanks, Garcia." He walked out, not letting Garcia question his vague inquiry. Garcia's brows drew together and she pressed her lips into a straight line, silently wondering where Emily was.

"Morgan. Have you seen Prentiss?" Hotch's voice was hard and void of all emotion. Morgan looked up from his paper work and cocked his head to the side. He shook his head as he thought about it for a moment.

"No. Why? Is she not here today? I just figured she was off doing some paperwork or in JJ's office." Morgan could tell that something was wrong. Emily was always there and if Hotch was forcing his tone to be emotionless, then something wasn't right.

"No. JJ asked me earlier and I haven't been able to get anything on her. No one's seen her all day." Hotch glanced around Morgan's work space and shook his head, hoping that Emily was just sick.

"Well...have you called her?" Morgan's eyes were fixed on Hotch's as he sat on his desk.

"Um...no. JJ was doing that, but I guess I can do the same." He picked up his phone and pressed a number on his speed dial, waiting for it to start ringing.

"Hello, Hotch." A woman's voice came on the other end and Hotch was surprised.

"Prentiss?" He waited as he relaxed. Emily was alright.

"No. It's JJ. Emily left her phone in her office." Hotch melted. Emily would never leave her phone. Morgan's brows drew together and he thought back to the night before, wondering if there was anything off about her before he left for home. He didn't recall anything but now regretted leaving before her.

***

Tears spilled from Emily's sluggish eyes. It felt like every muscle in her body had been ripped apart. She blinked and a flood of memories came back to her: the screaming, blood, and pain. She gritted her teeth, trying to force the tears back into her eyes. She would not be weak like this. That was just not her. She repelled the tears and forced herself to be calm. Panicking would not help her situation. Once again, her thoughts found their way back to her team. She had to believe that they noticed she was gone and was looking for her. She needed to have faith in that. It was the only thing keeping her strong. Then, the man who took her stepped into the dark room where she was being held. He walked close to the center of the room, turning on a blinding light. Emily's eyes burned and she could see nothing but the shadow of the man. She assumed that that was the point of the light. 'Quick', she thought. 'I need a profile.' That was the only way she knew to deal with this. Emily found it difficult to concentrate hard enough to get any of the words right in her head. She threw those thoughts aside for a moment, focusing on her captor; that was the only way she would get a profile anyway. Though Emily had been with this man for at least 10 hours, she had not seen his face.

"Hello, Agent Prentiss." His voice was gruff and full of patronizing hatred. Emily wondered what she had done to deserve all of this. Her eyes were adjusting to the blinding light and she noticed that it illuminated some of the prison-room she was being held in.

"Who are you?" Emily's voice was scratchy from her screaming and it hurt to speak.

"I don't think that you need that information." He stood still, not even moving a muscle. Emily looked around and saw very little. It was a simple room with four walls and a door. The only furniture in the room was what she was sitting on; the cold, steel chair and the bright beam directed at her face.

"What do you want?" Emily found her words were slurred and tremulous, she felt like she was drugged. Her thoughts were foggy and things were starting to move around her. Then, a brief thought of Reid when Tobias had kidnapped him crossed her mind and she immediately focused on something else, hoping that she would make it out before any permanent damage was done. She peered through the fog and tried to pay attention.

"Good. You're catching on. I'm going to call your boss and see if he misses you enough to play the game." He sounded excited. By now, Emily could see her captor's face and she really wished she hadn't. Besides being enormous, his appearance was by far the worst part. Emily gasped when she saw his face. There were five, unbelievably long scars stretching across his entire face and one of them went over his left eye. He didn't appear to have a left eye. The eye that he did have was settled deep into his face and half of his nose on that side was gone. This man had been mauled. He had this chilling smile that looked more like a grimace and he chuckled darkly after he saw Emily's reaction to his deformed face.

Emily's head spun and she heard the words: "play the game" over and over, echoing in her mind. It was like she was spinning and floating through the air. She tried to focus but in a matter of seconds, her vision faded and she only saw black.

***

JJ and Morgan walked into Emily's apartment building with a sense of fear in the air. They knew that something was definitely wrong. As they approached the door, Morgan reached forward to knock. A few seconds passed and there was no answer. JJ glanced at Morgan and tried the doorknob. It was unlocked. They shared another fearful glance and went inside. Emily would definitely not have left her door unlocked with all that she saw every day. That would be asking for something bad to happen. They unholstered their weapons and walked in, tense.

JJ gasped as she saw the whole place was chaos. They definitely knew that Emily wasn't a slob; the whole apartment was a mess. The chairs and tables were overturned and every glass item in the room was broken. There was a blood stain on the carpet that looked recent and JJ couldn't take her eyes from it. Morgan got JJ's attention and gave her a look that meant for her to keep going through the house. They had to clear it before they did anything else. All JJ could think about was that blood stain; it was too much blood.

They cleared the apartment and stood, staring at the stain on the carpet.

"Maybe we should call Hotch." Morgan's voice was far-off. His eyes were livid and he was trying not to imagine every horrible scenario that could have happened to Emily. JJ tried to snap herself out of the trance and call their boss. She pulled the dialing phone to her ear, her eyes still trailing on the horrid, dark, red blotch on the floor.

"Hotch, her apartment is clear…it's a mess. There's a blood stain and lots of broken glass everywhere." Her voice was dead and Hotch could hear the sadness.

"Okay. I'll call in a team to process the scene and you two get back here." With that, he hung up and JJ closed her phone slowly.

"He said for us to head back." JJ swallowed and squeezed her eyes shut. She didn't want to think about Emily being in pain. She was the strongest person JJ knew and their team had had its fair share of tragedy; they didn't need any more.

Once they were back with the rest of the team, they decided to meet in the conference room to discuss what they had on Emily's situation. This was now their only focus. Silence filled the tight air as the team stared at each other. Ring, Ring, Ring…the conference phone sliced through the silence and shook everyone from their daze. That was weird. Hotch stared at it for a second and blinked a few times before he pushed the speaker button, answering it.

"Agent Hotchner." Hotch glanced to Rossi for a second and then back to the speaker in the middle of the table.

"Hello, Aaron Hotchner." A deep, raspy voice answered and a chill went over the whole room.

"Who is this?" Hotch got Garcia's attention and made a gesture that meant for her to track the caller. She typed astonishingly fast, her fingers flying across the keys. Everyone in the room sat up straighter, listening intently to every word coming from this guy's mouth.

"Oh, I think you know enough about me to know what this call is about. So, Aaron…can I call you Aaron?" There was a silence when Hotch refused to play his game.

"What do you want?" Hotch kept his anger under control.

"You don't want to know how our dear Emily is doing?" His words were mocking. JJ gritted her teeth and squeezed the arm of her chair. Garcia grabbed JJ's hand and swallowed.

"She's right here, you know. Do you want to talk with her?" Again there was a silence.

"Well I was just calling to give you the rules of the game. But if you don't want to know the rules…well…I'll still be playing. Sweet Emily will be the one to pay for it." JJ's eyes filled with moisture and she gave Hotch a pained look. This was her best friend they were talking about. Of course they had to play the game.

"Rules?" Hotch said this through a tout jaw. There was no way around this, and if there was, he couldn't see it.

"Oh where to begin. So we have established that I kidnapped Emily and there are rules for you to obey. Rule number 1: you must not bring in anyone else on this case; no higher authority or otherwise a person not sitting in the conference room right not. I know that the whole team….not counting my darling Emily…is in there. Rule number 2: you do something wrong, Emily pays for it. Rule number 3: You may do whatever it takes to find your dear friend, only working in the given parameters. Rule number 4: You have to watch….." There was a silence throughout the room as everyone waited.

"Let the game begin."

_This is my first Criminal Minds fanfiction story. Please Read and Review!!! :D –soccergirlmich--_


	2. Chapter 2

Paralyzing Fear

JJ heard the man's voice echo in her head: "let the game begin". This was a game…her best friend's life was a game. Anger boiled in her chest and she gritted her teeth together so hard that she heard a grinding sound. She stood abruptly from her seat and left the room, feeling the worried, glassy stares from her team and taking her hand from Garcia's caring one. JJ's livid eyes burned with oncoming tears and she just had to get away from the overly kind faces in the conference room. When she got to her office, she slammed the door shut and took a deep breath, trying to breathe. This just couldn't be happening. Emily was the best agent she had ever worked with and the thought of her having to go through any of this horror made her want to puke. Remembering what had happened to Elle made her stomach even more uneasy. Elle had been so strong…until that. She was emotionally broken and would never be the same again. JJ couldn't and wouldn't let that happen to Emily. She set her jaw straight and took a deep breath, determined.

***

Emily saw the camera's red, blinking eye glaring at her. She had overheard her captor's conversation with Hotch…She knew that the game had begun and that her team could see her now. Whatever happened, however horrible it may be, she had to be strong. She just couldn't let her team see her exhibiting any kind of weakness. Emily remember herself watching as Reid was being tortured and how horrific it had been to sit and watch those things happening to her friend, not being able to do a thing to stop it. She promised herself to not let that happen…she would show no pain in order to let the team know that she was okay…even if she wasn't.

She had to wonder what her team was doing to find her. It bothered her immensely to be blind—on the other side of the badge. It was a helpless, dark, and lonely feeling. It was hard for her to believe that she wasn't really alone…that there were people out there who cared for her and were working non-stop to find her. She had a hard time believing that she was going to make it out of this alive. Reliving every furious hit and bone-crushing grasp made it impossible to think of anything but death. Her head throbbed in short bursts of intense pain every few seconds and she could feel her broken ribs as she stretched in the hard, metal chair she was confined to.

"Emily Prentiss." Emily half-opened her weary, mock fearless eyes when she heard her captor's presence. She faced him, trying to hold herself high and show that she was completely unafraid.

"So…where shall we begin?" His voice was like nails running down a chalkboard. Emily decided not to speak to him. His eyes grew angry and his face reddened, matching his beard.

"Answer me!" He screamed obscenities at her and threw a few terrible punches, catching her in the jaw and nose. The first thing, besides the pain, was the indication of some sort of mood disorder…if he was bipolar, then she was in a lot of trouble. Blood poured profusely from her nose and Emily controlled her emotions as to not show the horrible pain radiating from her broken nose and fractured jaw. Her eyes spun and she tried to focus on the livid face in front of her, but as soon as the world stopped moving, she saw the fist again. She never even had time to brace herself from the attack, but she was kind of grateful for that so she wouldn't have to cover her fear. In a matter of moments, blackness seeped over her vision and she was out.

***

JJ walked as calmly as possible from her office toward Garcia's, so she could see how Emily was doing. When she opened the door, she wished she hadn't even left her office. The whole team was there, only it was deathly silent. The only noise was coming from one of Garcia's speakers. Her face fell. It was Emily; she was refusing to speak to the unbelievably huge man. JJ didn't want to look but she couldn't take her eyes away. The man screamed and threw his fists at her face as hard as he could. They heard an awful snap and everyone cringed. JJ could hear Garcia's quiet sobs, but was too staggered by the scene in front of her that she couldn't find the strength to comfort her dear friend. When it seemed like the man was finished with his torture for the moment, the anger filled his features once again and he punched her so hard that the chair fell backward, Emily's head cracking on the pavement.

JJ squeezed her eyes shut and gasped; knowing Emily was definitely out cold after that one. Morgan's muscles were shaking with fury and his knuckles were white as he gripped Garcia's chair. Garcia buried her face in her hands and cried as Hotch had a fiery rage in his eyes. Rossi looked down and shook his head, rubbing his temples. Reid's eyes were wide in horror as he stared at the screen. Emily was his friend and like a protective big sister to him. He didn't even know how to react to any of this; he swallowed, holding back tears. JJ tried not to let tears escape her eyes, but couldn't help a couple that fled too quickly for her to stop. She wiped them away, looking back up to the screen. Emily lay unmoving on the ground and the evil, psychopathic man looked over to the camera and smiled menacingly, laughing.

"Oh….I forgot. Every time she doesn't cooperate with me, she pays. Don't forget our agreement. You must watch. One of you at all times has to be watching…don't think I can't tell if you're not." His voice broke and he cleared it. They couldn't really see his face; it was only a silhouette against the dimly lit dump of a room.

"Take care…talk to you soon." He walked away and jerked Emily's chair to its feet, then out of the room. Emily's face was swollen and bruised, blood trickling down the side of her face and pouring from her nose. This was horrible. Morgan ran out of the room, punching the wall on the way and everyone jumped. Garcia sobbed and JJ walked shakily forward, putting a distant, comforting hand on her shoulder. Her eyes were red and wide with shock, her gaze still locked on her best friend's damaged face. Hotch stepped out of the room, a silent furiousness permeating through the room and Rossi followed. Reid stood in shock for a few moments until JJ looked up to his child-like eyes. She softened hers and put a warm hand on his arm, guiding him out of the room; he didn't need to see any more of this. JJ pulled up a chair and sat in complete silence next to Garcia, guessing that she was on the first shift to watch. They wouldn't leave Garcia alone to watch this horrific video feed; that was cruel.

Hotch followed Morgan to his desk and stood at a safe distance behind him, Rossi doing the same. Reid didn't follow them, but instead sat at his desk as he avoided looking at Emily's.

"Morgan…we need another angle. Do you think you could come up with something with Reid?" Morgan had calmed a little and he nodded as he glanced at Reid.

"Doesn't Emily's mother need to know about this? What about Strauss?" Morgan voiced a worry that hadn't even occurred to Hotch, and he grimaced, shaking his head.

"You work with Reid. I'll call her mother…and Rossi, could you leave a message with Strauss' secretary?" Rossi nodded and the work ensued.

***

Emily Prentiss was sure she was dead. Surely that punch had ended her life. She felt like she was hovering right above the brink of pain that she assumed was coming soon…that was; if she was still alive. Slowly and painfully the pounding slithered back into the forefront of her thoughts and it felt like her head would explode. Squeezing her eyes as tightly as she could, she groaned. Why didn't she just answer the stupid man? Cooperation was not part of her vocabulary when it concerned her kidnapper. It felt like there was a knife stabbing constantly into the back of her head. Disoriented, Emily opened her eyes and looked around. She swore under her breath: she was still here. Her team hadn't found her yet and there was sure to be more pain in store for her. Looking at the blinking red light, she wanted to beg her team to come save her…but she knew how much that would just make the situation worse so she pushed that foolish idea away.

"Emily, are you feeling more cooperative after your nap?" The huge man walked in, holding an ominous bag; she was sure she didn't want anything to do with whatever was inside. Emily squinted, the pain making her dizzy.

"What do you want with me? What do you gain from having me here?" Emily's voice was rough and just above a whisper. She smoothed her expression of pain to nothing and waited for an answer.

"Oh, Emily. I'm sure you know what I want from you." He sat immediately across from her.

"I assure you that I don't." Venom crept into her tone and she forced it back down again, feeling a pang through her head. The man cocked his head to the side and continued not breaking the silence.

"What's your name?" Emily needed to make some kind of a connection with him so she could somehow save herself.

"Oh! How incredibly rude of me. My name is James Ford…you can call me whatever you like." His eyes were pleasant for the few seconds he explained his name, but as soon as he stopped talking, his eyes flashed blood-red.

"Ford...Did your mom name you that?" She was digging for something; anything. His breathing became labored and Emily's eyes widened. She was going to regret that.

***

"Garcia, look. Emily's awake." JJ's voice gained some color.

"Wow. She's gotta be hurting so much right now." Her voice was soft and sad.

"Gosh. Look at her face. I bet her skull is fractured. She hit her head really hard." JJ quieted her tone and a dull grey overtook it.

"She's talking to him. Oh no. Emily, why'd you do that?" Garcia heard Emily's mistake. JJ knew why she asked, but this was not good. They both watched nervously as the man named Ford picked up the bag. JJ didn't want to know what was in the bag, and from Emily's dreading eyes, she didn't either.

From the bag, Ford pulled out some sort of machine. Emily's eyes were wild with trepidation which mirrored JJ and Garcia's. A couple of minutes ago, JJ had texted the rest of the team that they might want to get in there and some of them were showing up, not knowing what was happening. Silence soaked the air as Ford picked up two clamps. He attached one to the leg of the metal chair and one to the unknown machine. Emily guessed what it was and it showed on her face. Fear wasn't supposed to be shown, but this wasn't anything she was prepared for. The beatings she could handle….but this……..

_Thank you guys for your awesome reviews! Keep them coming! :D Please continue to review!!! _

–_soccergirlmich--_


	3. Chapter 3

Paralyzing Fear

"We're not supposed to bring Strauss in on this, Hotch and I don't think 'the rules' allow you speaking to Ambassador Prentiss either." Rossi grabbed Hotch before he could walk off to call Ambassador Prentiss. Hotch sighed, wondering where his mind had been.

"Thanks for catching that. I didn't even think about it but I have to keep her in the loop with whatever case we're working on or she'll come looking." Hotch pursed his lips, unsure of how to proceed.

"I'll go talk with her secretary and make sure she doesn't let Strauss check on us." Rossi wasn't sure how he was going to do this, but he had to…for Emily. He couldn't even think about what would happen to her if he got someone else involved.

"What about her mother? She should know that something's going on, right?" Hotch didn't know if telling Emily's mother was against the rules, but it seemed wrong keeping it from her.

"This is Emily's life we're talking about. The Ambassador can be pissed later as long as we save Emily." Rossi nodded seriously and patted Hotch's shoulder before he hurried off to Strauss' office. Hotch took a deep breath, wondering what Emily was doing at that moment…

"Um…JJ, what's that?" Garcia asked, fear shaking her voice. They hadn't noticed that Morgan and Reid had walked in, wondering what was going on. They didn't even have to ask. Once they looked at the screen, quietness drifted over the room.

"I don't know…" JJ just wished this was a dream; that none of it was true.

Emily's blood-shot eyes wavered and her breathing became shallow. Now, the only thought on her mind was that machine. The video camera could have been on the moon for how much she thought of it. Her hands shook as she held onto the arm of the chair, preparing herself for the pain.

"I'm assuming you've guessed what this does?" Ford patted the hunk of metal next to him and looked to Emily's fearful eyes. She nodded.

"This baby can shoot out up to two thousand volts at one time." Ford smiled, turning a knob. Emily nodded again, closing her eyes. Of course, she thought.

JJ put her head in her hands, praying that this was all a dream. She looked up again, seeing Emily's terrified face. She knew Emily had been covering her fear for the whole time and now she just couldn't anymore. Reid's eyes were wide and he eyed Morgan for a second. Morgan's eyes were devastated; Emily was his partner, and he couldn't lose another

Emily took a rattling breath and tried to unclench her sweaty hands. This was going to be horrible but she had to be strong.

"You know…You can stop this from happening." Ford's mischievous eyes drifted over Emily's as she looked up.

"There's just one little thing." Emily sighed, waiting for the catch.

"Tell me about Agent Jennifer Jareau." Emily didn't even need time to decide.

"No." It was as simple as that. Her voice was raspy and scratchy from the lack of water but her tone was absolute and strong.

JJ gasped, hearing the one thing that would save her best friend's life. She whimpered in protest and squeezed her eyes shut. Garcia's eyes shot up to meet hers and she swallowed. This could not be happening. She knew exactly what Emily would say and she squeezed her eyes shut, clenching her fists in anger.

"No." Emily didn't even think about it. JJ melted, knowing what was coming.

Ford turned a knob and waited for the light to turn green. Once it did, he turned to Emily again.

"One more chance." Emily chuckled to herself and Ford pushed a button, malice in every move. This was unlike any pain she had felt her entire life. Electric volts shot through her veins and shook her bones. She felt like her muscles were being ripped from her tendons and she screamed in agony. She convulsed against the electric shocks running through her body and her nose bled with the force. She had promised to show no pain but that was the farthest thought from her mind at that moment. Pain encompassed her every thought. Once the initial pain had ended, she felt the electric current recede and the after-shocks pull her muscles into contraction every few seconds. Her breathing was rapid and her body shuddered.

"Do you have an answer for me?" Ford's gruff voice shattered her thoughts painfully. Emily shook and couldn't even think about answering him. Ford pushed the same, dreaded button and watched as Emily's body wracked with agony and defiance. After a few seconds of trying to hold in the pain, she couldn't hold it anymore. She screamed until her throat was raw and then once the currents stopped, she passed out.

JJ stared at the screen, wide-eyed with her hand clapped over her mouth. Her eyes were filled with tears and she stood, not wanting to believe this was happening to her friend. She watched as Ford addressed them.

"She's getting weaker and weaker. You better start doing your jobs and save your friend. Soon, she'll be so weak that she'll start to give away things about you, JJ. Oh…take your time. I'm kind of having a little fun with her. She's a fighter." He chuckled before he left the frame. Morgan left the room with a bang and Reid followed silently, in shock. JJ continued to stare at the screen, wondering what kind of person she was. She just sat there and watched her friend get tortured and she did nothing about it. How was this 'doing her job'? This had to be the worst job she had ever done at the BAU. This was Emily's life at stake and JJ had to save her. JJ glanced down at Garcia and gritted her teeth. She tightened her eyes and left the room, leaving Garcia by herself to watch the horrible video feed. Garcia worried a little that JJ would go off by herself to save Emily, but then the thought left her mind as soon as she had it. She didn't think that JJ was reckless enough to do that…she was wrong.

_Sorry for the long wait! I hope this is good! I'm still working out some kinks in the story. R&R! _

_-soccergirlmich-_


	4. Author's Note

Oh my gosh, guys…..the stupid computer put the chapter from my other story: "Alone" into this….I have no idea how that happened…mmkay….first of all: I would like to apologize for the confusion….ugh. I'm kind of miffed now. I will update soon and make this right again. I hope you guys don't get too irritated with me for it.

Once again: I'm sorry and I will fix it. :D Thank you for your patience (if you are patient with me, that is) :D

-soccergirlmich-


	5. Back to the story

Paralyzing Fear

_Okay…Maybe I can get this right this time…I'm sorry for the confusion, once again. _

JJ nearly ran out of Garcia's office and out to her car. She had to fix this. She got out her phone and dialed the number that she had taken from when the Unsub had called them. Waiting, rather impatiently, she tapped her steering wheel.

"Hello JJ." The raspy voice on the other end surprised her.

"How did you know…" JJ's eyes were wild and she started to drive aimlessly around the block.

"That doesn't matter right now. What matters right now is that you want to help Emily. I knew you would come to me. Now, if you'll get on the highway and take the third exit and then drive for twenty minutes until you get to a warehouse. I'll see you there. Oh, and don't even think about calling your boss. I'll know and Emily will pay. Plus…this warehouse isn't where Emily is. So your GPS won't give anything away darling. I can't wait to meet you, JJ." With that, he hung up, leaving JJ feeling thoroughly creeped out. She couldn't believe she was being this stupid. She knew that she would get taken by the Unsub and then her team would have two people to save, but she couldn't just sit around waiting for….nothing. She couldn't just leave her best friend to suffer alone and she wouldn't. If she wasn't convinced before, she was now.

As she drove on, she finally arrived at the warehouse. She pulled in, her heart pounding at an impossible tempo. Her breathing was definitely unsteady and she couldn't help but think of how Emily had been feeling when she was taken. If it was anything like this, she didn't know how Emily dealt with it. Then again, Emily was the strongest person she knew and she compartmentalized everything better than anyone she had ever met. This was a horrible idea, she thought. She sat in her car and eyed the parking lot. Then, out of nowhere, an indistinguishable man burst through her window, knocking her out and dragging her to a van. He threw her inside and sped off.

Garcia sat alone in her office, staring at her friend's lifeless body. She wished that JJ hadn't left. This was one of the most difficult cases and she had no one to help her through it. Even Morgan hadn't come in since JJ left, which was a little odd. He was always in tune with Garcia's feelings and needs. When she needed to talk, he was there. But now, when she really needed someone, she was all alone with all of this useless, unhelpful information she had managed to dig up. The very thing that she loved was letting her down. Her gift had been halted and now Emily was suffering. Her friend's life was on the line and she could do nothing to help save her. Depression settled over her head and she pushed the tears away.

"Baby girl?" Morgan walked in with a tense, but tender look on his face. Garcia looked up at him with vulnerable pain in her eyes. He walked in and closed the door, concern in every movement.

"What's wrong?" As soon as he said this, he got an incredulous look in return.

"What's wrong? I'll tell you. I'm stuck in here watching Emily suffer and JJ leaves me alone and you and Reid leave and now I have to sit here and feel helpless. I can't help Emily and I can't stop the torture. She's not going to last long and I don't know how to deal with this." Garcia's voice wavered and tears flowed freely from her eyes. She wasn't ashamed of them. She had held them in for hours.

"Baby girl, I'm so sorry. I was working with Reid on some leads that didn't go anywhere. I actually came in here to look for JJ. Did you say she left you in here?" There was confusion in his eyes.

"Yeah, she left about an hour and a half ago. I figured she was with you. She wasn't with you?" Garcia's voice tightened in fear. She didn't think JJ would do anything stupid….maybe she was wrong?

"She's not in her office either. Do you have any idea where she could be?" Morgan looked on as Garcia's eyes turned to horror and she blamed herself.

"I didn't think she would do anything. She was really upset after the Unsub hurt Emily again and she ran out after you guys did. I think she's going after the Unsub by herself." Tears streamed down Garcia's horrified and fearful face. Morgan closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. JJ had put herself in danger…that's just what the team needed…

_Thank you for your reviews….even though I screwed up… :D I'm sorry about that. Please continue to READ and REVIEW! I love reviews and I think I know where I'm going with this story finally. :D Thank you! –soccergirlmich-_


	6. Chapter 5

Paralyzing Fear

Garcia was in near hysterics as she realized what JJ had done. Morgan took a deep breath and attempted to calm Garcia down.

"Hey…sweetie. You need to calm down and I need you to stay here and watch Em—Prentiss." Morgan stopped himself from using Emily's first name so he could stay as far away emotionally as possible from this case. He had to get to Hotch and tell him about JJ as soon as he could. "Hey, baby girl. Look at me." Garcia looked up, fear filling every inch of her expression. "JJ's gonna be fine. She probably just went to see Henry, okay? Just stay here and watch over Prentiss. She still needs us. I'll find JJ." Morgan's voice was confident, but his eyes were troubled. Garcia nodded and turned around to her other friend who was motionless and unconscious, still in so much danger.

Morgan gave Garcia one more encouraging look before he left, urgently looking for Hotch. He spotted him coming from around the corner and half-sprinted to him.

"Hotch, please tell me you know where JJ is." Morgan's voice was tight and pained. Hotch cocked his head to the side and shook it slowly.

"Isn't she with Garcia watching the video feed?" Morgan tried not to notice the catch in Hotch's voice when he mentioned the video. He was sure that Hotch saw Emily's torture over and over again in his mind, blaming himself like Morgan did.

"I went in there looking for her because she wasn't in her office…and Garcia thought she was with me. Apparently she was really upset about what happened and she left and Garcia didn't think that she would do anything stupid…but she has a feeling that JJ went after the Unsub by herself." It didn't even sound right coming out of his mouth. JJ wasn't stupid; she wouldn't just go put herself in danger like this. She had Will and Henry to think about…

"Okay…get a hold of the GPS coordinates of her car and report back to me. I'll call her and make sure she's not with Will." Hotch's voice was urgent. Morgan went quickly to Garcia's office knowing that the faster they got this information, the better it would be for JJ.

"Garcia, I need you to run a trace on JJ's cell and car." Morgan didn't even have to finish before Garcia had started typing frantically. Within seconds he had his answer.

"Her phone's off…so I can't get a location. I'll leave a running trace so when it comes back on, we'll know. Her car is at some warehouse…here's the address." She quickly scribbled it down on a sticky note and gave it to him, silently pleading with him to bring JJ back with him. He answered her look with a pat on the shoulder before he left. Garcia thought back to when Morgan consoled her with the possibility that JJ had just gone to see Henry and she shook her head knowing that the tiny bit of hope that she had was gone. She looked up to the live feed of Emily and tears immediately sprang to her eyes. She saw Emily's frail form limp on the chair she was tied to and the blood on her face. Garcia's heart hurt as she sat in her rolling chair wishing she could do something, anything to get her friends back. Hopelessness filled her thoughts, nearly drowning her and she put her head in her hands, letting out a sorrowful breath.

Every part of Emily's body hurt. Her muscles burned, her head screamed in pain, and every breath she tried to take was cut short by the scorching in her chest. She squeezed her eyes shut but that only made the blinding pain burst from behind her eyes. She let out a moan and tried to move, opening her eyes to a bright light. If her head was hurting before, she didn't even know pain until that moment. Tears streamed from her eyes and yelled in protest, her throat raw and raspy.

"It's about time you woke up, Emily." The voice of her captor made her heart drop into her stomach. The light was turned away from her eyes and she squinted, letting her eyes adjust. Then she saw something that made everything in her want to kill the man that had taken her. JJ's fearful face was looking at her with concern and her eyes were red with recent tears. Emily yelled and struggled against her restraints and her pain.

"No! Let her go!" Emily' s voice broke and she squeezed her eyes shut as her muscles fought against the violent movements.

"I think I'll let you two talk alone." The man left Emily and JJ with a dark chuckle and closed the door.

"Em…are you okay?" JJ saw the blood and pain all over her friend's face.

"Yeah." JJ could hear the contradiction in her voice. "What happened, JJ?" Emily whispered and tried to get more comfortable in the chair which only made her muscles constrict painfully.

"I called him…" JJ's voice was small and her tone sounded ashamed of her actions.

"You did what?" Emily tried to raise her voice at JJ and winced with the effort.

"We've been watching what's been happening to you this whole time and I had to do something about it. We weren't getting any closer…" She trailed off and eyed her ring with purpose. Before Emily could protest again, she glanced down at her friend's hand, seeing a ring she had never seen before. Emily then realized what JJ had done. She had given herself up in order to catch this guy. Emily shook her head, wishing JJ hadn't put herself in danger. Through the pain and blood, JJ saw Emily's eyes brighten in realization. JJ nodded and took a breath.

"I can't believe you called him, JJ." Emily raised her voice again and grimaced in pain.

"I couldn't just let him torture you to death, Em." There was pain and sorrow in JJ's voice. Emily squeezed her eyes tight and tried to take a deep breath. There was a long silence and after a few seconds, the door opened and Ford walked in, smiling maniacally.

"Well that was a sweet little reunion. Sorry to break it up…but I just couldn't resist." JJ put on her strong mask and her face contorted with disgust and anger. Ford sauntered lazily to Emily's side and JJ tensed, willing Ford not to hurt her friend with all her might.

"Hotch, you coming?" Morgan grabbed his keys and jacket, leaving to go to JJ's car. Hotch dropped the papers he was holding on Morgan's desk and followed, without hesitation.

_Sorry for the long wait! Thank you for reading! Please review! I love reviews! Hopefully I will get another chapter up soon! –soccergirlmich-_


	7. Chapter 6

Paralyzing Fear

"_Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is freedom." ~Marilyn Ferguson_

As the black SUV pulled into the small parking lot next to a group of warehouses, Morgan and Hotch immediately spotted JJ's car; it was the only one in the lot. Their faces were stone as they quickly got out, making their way to the only lead they had. Thoughtful, discerning silence filled the air as the two profilers observed the scene in front of them. The driver's side door was left ajar and the window was busted. An air of tension surrounded them and Morgan's anger was starting to boil over and he walked around the car, attempting to reign in his emotions and focus on details. Hotch swallowed and narrowed his eyes at something odd on the passenger seat.

"Morgan, what is that?" He got Morgan's attention and gestured toward a black box. Morgan opened the door and picked up the object, recognition sparking in his eyes. "What?" Hotch didn't know what it was and he was getting impatient. When he didn't get a response right away, he walked around the SUV. Morgan looked up from the object with hope in his eyes.

"I know why JJ did this." His demeanor was now determined and urgent as he pulled Hotch with him back to their car. When Hotch started the car, he gave Morgan an impatient glare. "Just head back to the office and I'll explain." Hotch shook his head and frowned, slamming on the gas pedal.

"JJ took this from Garcia's office. It's paired with a ring…it's a tracker, Hotch. She wanted to get taken by him so that we could find Emily. It was stupid and reckless, but brilliant…" He stopped and glanced at his boss, who set his jaw and sped up, screeching around a corner and soliciting blaring horns from behind him.

….

Emily stared at the terrified eyes of her friend and held her breath. She tried to hold back her fear, but now she had more to be afraid of. Not only was her own life in danger, but now she was faced with the safety of JJ. She hoped with all of her being that this sadist had no interest in hurting JJ.

JJ gritted her teeth and held back the tears that were on the brink of falling. Now all she could do was watch and wait…she desperately prayed that the team had found her breadcrumb and that they were on their way now. She didn't know how long she could take watching this man torture Emily.

"So…JJ. Our dear Emily has decided to decline telling me things about you…are you going to do the same?" JJ remained silent and she eyed his beefy hand getting closer and closer to Emily's face. She swallowed and stared into Emily's strong eyes. JJ didn't understand how Emily could be so strong after all she'd been through, but if she could, then JJ had no excuse.

"Alright…if you're going to play it that way…" Ford smiled and let his hand rest on the top of Emily's head.

…

"Garcia! Trace this now!" Hotch handed her the black box and tried to keep himself calm, adrenaline pulsing through his body. The blonde technical analyst's eyes were red from recent tears, but now she was all business, typing furiously, triangulating the location of JJ's ring.

"Got it! It's been sent to all of your phones. Go save our friends…" Garcia watched them nearly run out of her office and grab Rossi and Reid. She sat still, now only able to wait and pray that they got there on time.

….

Emily gritted her teeth, the muscles in her jaw working up and down as she tried to move as far away from Ford's hand as she could. She could see JJ's fear and worry, and Emily went back to her strong façade.

"So you're not going to tell me anything about JJ, Emily?" Emily shook her head and took a breath, speaking up now. She just needed to stall him enough so that their team could find them.

"Why do you want to know about us? Why did you even take me?" JJ knew exactly what Emily was doing and she took a breath, praying it would work. Ford let his hand rest on Emily's shoulder and he squeezed, making it more than uncomfortable. Emily winced, but kept her eyes on JJ's.

"I don't think I have to answer your questions." Ford squeezed harder and JJ swallowed back the fear in her throat. Then Emily chuckled to the surprise of both Ford and JJ. "What is so funny?" JJ gave her a warning glare and bit her bottom lip.

"I just think it's funny that you want answers from me but you won't give any yourself…" Emily knew that pain was in her near future but this was part of the plan and she was more than willing to take the beating rather than have to watch JJ get hurt. Ford gritted his teeth and untied Emily's right hand. Emily's heart started beating out of control, knowing that whatever was about to come was not going to be pleasant. "You should be careful with the words that come out of your mouth." Suddenly, Ford yanked Emily's arm up and ripped her shoulder out of its socket, soliciting an agonized, blood curdling scream. JJ yelled and struggled against her restraints, tears streaming from her eyes. Ford threw her arm down, causing Emily to yell again, tears brimming on the edge of her eyes. Ford stormed out of the room and slammed the door. Emily held her breath, trying to control her breathing and her pain.

"Emily…" JJ's whimper was full of concern, shock, and fear. Emily squeezed her eyes shut. When she opened them, she took a breath and made ever conscious effort not to move an inch.

"It's okay…I'm alright." Emily said this through gritted teeth and a weak voice. JJ shook her head. "We'll be alright…"

_Thank you all for reading and reviewing! I appreciate all of your reviews and would love to hear more from all of you! Tell me what you think! –mlw217-_


	8. Chapter 7

Paralyzing Fear

"_Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear." –Mark Twain_

Emily held her breath and gritted her teeth as she tried not to yell out in agony. She was focusing all of her strength on keeping very still and not opening her mouth so that no pain-filled noise came out. There were terrible, shooting bursts of pain running from her shoulder down the length of her arm and her eyes filled with moisture. She could feel the weight of JJ's stare on her and she swallowed back the screaming, excruciating pain and let out a shaky breath, facing her friend's worried, surveying gaze.

"Okay…" She whispered this and squeezed her eyes shut before taking another deep breath. JJ's wide eyes were trailing on Emily's bruised, swollen face. "Alright." Emily grunted and attempted to pull her arm up to the arm of the chair, but cried out in pain instead.

"Emily, stop. Just be still." JJ pleaded. She didn't understand why Emily was causing herself even more pain and she couldn't watch it anymore.

"He left my hand untied…I can get us out of here…if I can just move my arm." Emily fought back tears and pressed her feet harder to the ground in preparation for moving her injured limb. She glanced one more time across the room to JJ's worried eyes and ignored when she shook her head in protest. Emily's mouth formed an O shape and she blew out a few fearful breaths before steeling herself. It was like ripping a band-aid off, she told herself. She just had to quickly pull her arm up and then it would be over. One agony-filled movement and she would be done with it. With every effort she had in her, she used her injured, screaming tendons to pull her arm to her restrained wrist. JJ shut her eyes tightly and put her chin to her chest, praying for the team to get there faster.

….

__ Hotch wrenched the steering wheel as he turned a corner and the rest of the team held onto whatever they could find to keep themselves from falling into one another. The tension was thick and all thoughts were with JJ and Emily. The few minutes they had been in the SUV were passing so slowly and it felt like they had been in there for an hour. Reid glanced over to Morgan, who was staring hard out the window, his knee bouncing up and down. Rossi seemed to be focusing on something on the dash in front of him and Hotch was speeding down a street with a menacing determination in his eyes.

After a few more minutes, they had arrived at a rundown house. Without a word, the team filed out of the SUV and drew their weapons, following Hotch to the front door.

….

JJ looked on while Emily tried to move her injured arm close enough to her restraints to free herself and she shook her head.

"Em…please. Just take a break." It was torture just watching Emily's attempts and failures. JJ couldn't imagine how much pain her friend was in and she couldn't do anything to help her. She felt just as helpless as she did in front of Garcia's computer screen. On both ends, she was just sitting there watching Emily getting tortured.

"Ah!" Emily let out a small yelp and gave up, breathing hard. She cursed under her breath and frowned, squeezing her eyes shut.

"Not that I'm not enjoying seeing you struggle to escape your restraints…but I finished my lunch thirty minutes ago…got a little bored." Ford's voice boomed into the room as he entered, his bulky arm giving a dramatic flourish to his words. JJ swallowed, fear bubbling to the surface. She glanced over to Emily, who was doing everything in her power to hide her fear, but her eyes betrayed her. Ford walked close to Emily and JJ saw a few tears fall from her eyes, breaking her heart. "So…JJ. Do you remember me?" His voice echoed and JJ blinked, not knowing how to respond.

"Um…No? Should I remember you?" JJ was very careful with her words, but she couldn't lie to him – he would know she was lying…and that wouldn't end very well for Emily. Ford grew visibly furious at that remark, but he kept his anger at bay.

"I worked with you…In college?" Emily noticed the change in Ford's tone and she drew her brows together, her wild eyes meeting JJ's. JJ stammered.

"Um…uh…I-I'm sorry. That was a really long time ago." JJ drew out her words and swallowed again. Ford's expression was nostalgic and almost kind. Emily drew in a sharp breath when he gently placed his hulking hand on her injured, useless shoulder and JJ sat up a little straighter.

"Yes…yes it was. But I remember you very well…" Before Ford could elaborate and take them down memory lane that was sure to lead to more pain, Hotch and the team blasted through the door, guns all aiming at Ford's forehead. JJ took in a revitalizing breath and her brief smile faded when Emily yelled out in pain. She cursed and gritted her teeth. Ford still had his hand on her shoulder and was now squeezing with all his might. Reid was slowly untying JJ while still aiming his gun at their assailant. Once he finished, he handed JJ Morgan's extra gun and now the whole team had their guns out, daring this man to give them a reason to kill him.

"Get down on the ground, now!" Morgan yelled this, the venom in his voice chilling the room. Emily bit the inside of her mouth so she wouldn't scream again and she just prayed that it would just all end now. Ford's eyes were torn. He knew it was over. He knew he wouldn't make it out of there alive if he fought. But did he really want to live now? Hotch could see his internal debate and he spoke.

"Ford, unhand her and put your hands up. We don't want to shoot you." Hotch said this, lying through his teeth. Of course they all wanted to shoot him. He could almost hear Morgan's rebuttal, but was glad that he decided to remain silent. Ford let go of Emily's shoulder and she let out the breath that she had been holding, breathing hard now. Then, Ford glanced down at his prisoner and made a violent lunge for her, five gunshots filling the small room, echoing off of the cement walls…..__

Thank you all for the AWESOME reviews! I know I'm taking forever to update and I'm SO SORRY! But anyway, hope you enjoyed! Review and tell me what you think! 

_-mlw217-_


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